Terms & Conditions Of Business- (Small Animal)
Service
We offer the best Veterinary service and value possible and try to make this available to you whenever it is needed.We have routine surgeries Monday to Friday (between 9 a.m. and 6.30 p.m.) and Saturday mornings. We will endeavour to make an appointment with your preferred Veterinary Surgeon and at a convenient time for you.We offer a 24-hour service outside of these times. The phone will always be personally answered by the on duty team. In an emergency a Veterinary Surgeon will see you immediately at any time of the day or night. This will carry an extra charge on top of our routine consultation fee. Your phone call may be recorded for training purposes.
Visits
If it is difficult for you to get your pet to the surgery we can offer a house visit or we can help arrange transport if required. However your pet will receive much fuller attention at our Surgeries or Hospitals where facilities and trained staff are more readily available.
Facilities and Show-round
Our hospitals are very well equipped and you are welcome to request a show-round. If the team is very busy they may plan this for a time in the near future which is convenient for you and for ourselves.
Fees
All our charges – professional fees, drugs and diets –are subject to VAT at the current rate. Fee levels are determined by the time spent on a case and the drugs, materials, consumables used. A detailed receipt of all transactions is available on request.A list of our professional fees is available on request.
Estimate for treatment costs
We will happily provide a written estimate regarding the probable costs of a course of treatment. Please bear in mind that any estimate given can only be an approximation. Any procedure may involve further costs, as a pet’s illness may not follow a conventional course. In such cases we will endeavour to contact you, however if you are not available we will act in the best interests of your pet which will be your financial responsibility.
Methods of payment
Accounts are due for settlement at the end of the consultation, the discharge of your pet or upon collection of drugs/diets. You may settle the account using:CASH, CHEQUE with current bankers card, CREDIT/DEBIT CARD – Switch, Solo, Mastercard, Visa or Delta.
Settlement terms
There are certain situations where credit may have been allowed by negotiation with the Practice Manager. Should an account not be settled within 30 days, then a reminder will be sent with an additional accounting fee in respect of administrative costs incurred. Should it be necessary for further reminders to be sent, further charges will be incurred.These however, may be deducted if payment is made promptly. After due notice to you the client, overdue accounts will be referred to our Debt Collection Agency and further charges will be levied in respect of costs incurred in collecting the debt; such as production of reports, correspondence, court fees, attendance at court, phone calls, home visits, etc. Any cheque returned by our Bank as unpaid, any Credit Card payment not honoured and any Cash tendered that is found to be counterfeit will result in the account being restored to the original sum with further levies added in respect of bank charges and Administrative costs together with interest on the principal sum. We withhold the right, in this situation to share financial information with other interested parties.
Inability to pay
If, for any reason, you are unable to settle your account as specified, we ask you to discuss the matter as soon as possible with a senior member of staff. Please note that instalments or part payments of any account may ONLY be sanctioned with the express permission of The Practice Manager Jo Fairley. To obtain credit you will be required to fill in a detailed credit form and bring proof of name and address and bank details.
Pet health insurance
The Rowe Veterinary Group can offer assistance in choosing pet health insurance by showing you a range of policies from different insurers. Some policies may be cheaper than others but provide lesser cover. You should also check the excesses and exclusions before committing to a particular policy. Please be aware that it is your responsibility to settle our account and then reclaim the fees from your insurance company. In the past we have readily done direct claims. With the new FSA rulings Rowe Veterinary Group cannot raise queries with your insurance company. We can only do direct claims in special cases.
Ownership of radiograph and records
The care given to your animal may involve making some specific investigations, for example taking radiographs or performing ultrasound or MRI scans. Even though we make a charge for carrying out these investigations and interpreting their results, ownership of the resulting record, for example a radiograph, remains with the practice. This also applies to the clinical history of. This will be forwarded directly to another Veterinary Surgeon at your request.
Pet passports and vaccines
We strongly recommend annual vaccinations for your pets. We run a booster reminder system on our computer to ensure that you receive notification in good time that your pet is due for a booster. However, we do ask you to take full responsibility for this and diarise it yourself. We are able to advise and assist with obtaining a Pets Travel Passport. Please be aware that it is your responsibility to ensure that the correct documentation is carried at the time of travel. Details of your individual requirements can be gained by contacting DEFRA. We accept no responsibility regarding failure of any part of the Pet Passport process.
Identichip
We promote the use of Identichips and can inject these as a permanent form of identification. We are happy to check that the chip is in place and working whenever you are in the Surgery. We also offer the Biotherm chip on which we can also read your pets temperature.
Nurse Clinics
Veterinary nurses are readily available to see you and your pet. They can give advice on general health-care, administer medications and perform minor procedures.They run a variety of clinics, which include puppy parties, adolescent puppy and kitten checks, nutritional advice, dental checks and weight checks
Flea/worming treatments
We recommend regular dosing with flea and worm preparations for your pets. Where preparations fall within the POM-V category, we can only supply these if the animal must already be registered with us and under our care and the animal has been seen by one of our vets within the last 12 months.
Repeat prescriptions
When you request a repeat prescription for your animal we can only supply the medication if the vet has authorised a repeat prescription and the animal has been seen by one of our vets within the last six months. It may save time to ring before coming in to collect your prescription. We are also able to write a prescription with 48 hours notice to enable you to purchase medications elsewhere. Please ask for further information if you would like us to do this. There will be a charge for the veterinary surgeon to write a prescription to cover the time, responsibility and professional insurance involved.
Complaints and standards
We hope that you never have cause to complain about the standard of service received from the Rowe Veterinary Group. However, if you feel that there is something you wish to draw to our attention, please direct your comments in the first instance to Jo Fairley, Practice Manager. We want to hear from you so that we can always attempt to raise the standard of care and match your expectations. No addition or variation of these conditions will bind the practice unless it is specifically agreed in writing and signed by one of the practice partners. No agent or person employed by, or under contract with, the practice has the authority to alter or vary these conditions in anyway.
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